Moving stairway handrail guard



April 5, 1938. E. L. DUNN ET AL MOVING STAIRWAY HANDRAIL GUARD Filed June :5, 1936 W If 63 INVENTORS ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 5, 1938 UNITED STATES 2,113,1Fii

PATENT OFFICE MUVING STAIRWAY HANDRAIL GUARD Application June 3, 1936, Serial No. 83,200

8 Claims.

This invention relates to protective devices for the handrails of moving Stairways.

In a moving stairway installation, the handrails are usually carried by newel wheels around the ends of the stairway at the landings, through handrail openings provided in the balustrade. It is desirable to protect the handrail openings of the moving stairway in a manner to prevent the fingers or hands of passengers from being caught between the edges of the openings and the handrail and to exclude the insertion of articles such as umbrella tips or pencils through the openings.

It is the object of this invention to provide at the handrail openings of the balustrade guards which are effective to prevent injury to passengers hands or fingers and to prevent damage to the moving stairway due to attempts to insert pointed articles such as umbrella tips or pencils into the handrail openings.

In carrying out the invention, a rigid guard extends upwardly around the handrail for an appreciable distance from the handrail opening in the balustrade. The guard is so formed that as the handrail enters the opening in the guard, each longitudinal element of the handrail is at a small angle to the edge of the guard adjacent the handrail so that any object resting on the handrail and moving with it is deflected sidewise.

The features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the specification and appended claims.

In the drawing:

Figure l is a View in perspective of a portion of a moving stairway showing the balustrade equipped with a handrail guard embodying the invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective View of the guard and a portion of the stairway;

Figure 3 is a View looking at the front of the 40 guard in the direction of arrows 3-3 of Figure 2, with parts of the stairway shown broken away;

Figure 4 is a section taken along the line l-4 of Figure 3; and

Figure 5 is a section taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 3.

Referring to the drawing, the balustrade ll of the moving stairway I2 is equipped with a movable handrail l4. The handrail is carried by a newel wheel I5 around the end of the stairway through a handrail opening it provided in the end plate I! of the balustrade. A guard, designated as a whole by the numeral I8, is provided for the handrail opening. Guard 18 is preferably of metal. If desired, the guard may be of a metal selected to harmonize with or match the material of the balustrade structure.

According to the preferred construction the guard comprises two symmetrical horn-shaped casings 20, arranged around the handrail and extending upwardly from the handrail opening. The handrail is illustrated as C-shaped in section, the inner and outer surfaces of the casings being of the contour of the handrail. Each-cas-- ing is formed with an integral flange 2! at its base and is secured to the end plate of the balustrade as by screws 22. Each casing extends upwardly around the handrail from its respective flange 2!. The rear edge 23 of the casing abuts throughout its length the balustrade ii, The casing is formed so as to wrap around the handrail and at its base extends to substantially the longitudinal center line of the handrail. The front edge 24 of the casing extends upwardly from the base for a short distance parallel to the longitudinal center line of the handrail and thence at a suitable angle (about twenty degrees) along and around the handrail to the upper end of the casing where it intersects the rear edge. The upper end of the casing is secured to the balustrade as by a screw 25. The angled portion of the front edge is bevelled throughout its length from the inner surface to the outer surface of the casing at an acuate angle to the inner surface. The casing is formed to provide a uniform close clearance, say one-sixteenth of an inch, between the front edge of the casing and the outer surface of the handrail. Also, clearance is provided between the adjacent parallel portions of the front edges of the casings .to provide a slot 26.

In operation, in the event that a person grips the moving handrail as it enters the guard, his grip will be broken when his hand engages the sloping surfaces of the guard. Also, if a persons finger is pressed against the flat face of the moving handrail, it will, upon encountering the bevelled angular front edge of one of the casings, be deflected across the handrail toward the slot 2%. If the finger is not lifted from the handrail, it will ride up the bevelled surfaces when it reaches the slot 25. Should an attempt be made to insert an article such as a pencil point or the like between the handrail and the guard, the article is forced off the handrail at the slot 26 by the action of the bevelled edges of the casings, the slot 26 preventing the point being jammed between the handrail and the casings as the center line of the handrail is reached.

Many modifications of construction could be made without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the guard may be made in one piece with its front edge extending from one back edge around the handrail at an angle to its direction of movement across the face of the handrail to the other back edge. By Way of further example, the guard may be made in the form of a wedge extending upwardly around the handrail and having its base at the opening in the balustrade and its apex at the center line of the handrail. It is therefore to be understood that all matter contained in the above descripion or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

l. A protective device for a moving stairway handrail opening comprising, a pair of hornshaped casings arranged around the handrail and extending upwardly from the handrail opening and diverging'from the longitudinal center line of the handrail.

2. A protective device for a moving stairway handrail opening comprising, guarding means, and means for mounting said guarding means in superposed position upon said opening, the inner surface of said guarding means having an eX- posed edge extending around and along the handrail at a small angle to the longitudinal center line of said handrail.

3. A protective device for a handrail opening in a balustrade of a moving stairway comprising, guarding means arranged around the handrail to define an opening through which the handrail extends with a small clearance, the inner surface of said guarding means having exposed edges arranged to form a V with the point of the V on the longitudinal center line of said handrail, and means for mounting said guarding means in position with respect to said handrail opening.

4. A protective device for a moving stairway handrail opening comprising, a pair of casings mounted at said opening and extending upwardly therefrom, each casing being formed so as to wrap around the handrail with at least a portion of its front edge extending at a small angle away from the longitudinal center of the handrail to the upper end of the casing.

5. A protective device for a moving stairway handrail opening comprising, a pair of casings mounted at said opening and extending upwardly therefrom, each casing being formed so as to wrap around the handrail with its front edge extending upwardly from said opening for a short distance parallel to the longitudinal center line of the handrail and thence at a small angle along and around the handrail to the upper end of the casing.

6. A protective device for a moving stairway handrail opening comprising, a pair of casings mounted at said opening and extending upwardly therefrom, each casing being formed so as to wrap around the handrail with its front edge extending upwardly from said opening for a short distance parallel to the longitudinal center line of the handrail and thence at a small angle along and around the handrail to the upper end of the casing, the angled portion of the front edge being bevelled from the inner surface to the outer surface of the casing at an acute angle to the inner surface at least where the angled portion joins the parallel portion.

'7. A protective device for a handrail opening in the balustrade of a moving stairway comprising, a pair of casings mounted at said opening, one on each side of the longitudinal center line of the handrail, and extending upwardly therefrom, each casing having a base secured to the balustrate at said opening and being formed so as to wrap around the handrail with its front edge extending upwardly from said base for a short distance parallel to the longitudinal center line of the handrail and thence at a small angle along and around the handrail to the upper end of the casing, the angled portion of the front edge being bevelled throughout its length from the inner surface to the outer surface of the casing with a uniform close clearance between the inner surface of the casing at said front edge at least along said angled portion and the outer surface of said handrail, the rear edge of the casing abutting the balustrade throughout its length.

8. A protective device for an opening for a C-shaped handrail in the balustrade of a moving stairway comprising, a pair of casings extending upwardly from said opening, one on each side of the longitudinal center line of the handrail, each casing having a base secured to said balustrade at said opening and being formed so as to wrap around the handrail with its front edge extending upwardly from said base for a short distance parallel to the longitudinal center line of the handrail and thence away from the other casing at an angle of approximately twenty degrees to the direction of motion of the handrail along and around the handrail to the upper end of the casing, the angled portion of the front edge being bevelled throughout its length from the inner surface to the outer surface of the casing at an acute angle to the inner surface with a uniform close clearance between said front edge and the outer surface of said handrail, clearance being provided between adjacent parallel portions of the front edges of the casings to provide a slot.

EDWARD LEE DUNN. WILLIAM HENRY BRUNS, 

